SERIES STORYLINES
- This weekend marks just the sixth and seventh meetings between the two schools with Penn State holding the 4-0-1 all-time record. The Nittany Lions have outscoed the Purple Eagles 23-6 over the past five meetings.
- Penn State has a history of success against Atlantic Hockey teams, compiling a 34-14-2 all-time record against the conference, including a 16-2-0 mark since the start of the 2016-17 season.
- Niagara returns nine of its top 10 scorers from last season, including leading scorer Ludwig Stenlund, who tied for second in the nation with 23 goals.
- Penn State enters 2020 having been ranked in the uscho.com poll for the past two years, including in the top 20 in each of the last 52 consecutive polls.
STAT BREAKDOWN
PENN STATE STATISTICAL LEADERS
17 EVAN BARRATT
FORWARD
- Barratt scored a goal in each of the Nittany Lions' last two series at Michigan and Notre Dame.
- Barratt is second on the team with 15 assists and seven goals for 22 points.
- Registered the third-highest single-season point total in program history with 43 in 2018-19.
14 NATE SUCESE (SR.)
FORWARD
- Sucese leads the Nittany Lions with eight goals and 16 assists for a team-best 24 points.
- Sucese is No. 2 on the Penn State all-time points list with 126, and needs three more to become the program's career leader. His 58 goals and 68 assists rank him first and tied for second, respectively.
- Played two seasons with the USHL's Dubuque Fighting Saints, registering 38 goals and 48 assists for 86 points.
31 PEYTON JONES (SR.)
GOALIE
- Jones had 40 saves and allowed just two goals in Penn State's series-opening victory at Notre Dame last week.
- Started 32 games in 2018-19 while compiling an 18-12-2 record with a .901 save percentage and a 3.32 goals against average.
- He was a member of the USHL's Lincoln Starts from 2014-16.
HEAD COACH GUY GADOWSKY
- Gadowsky is in his eighth season at Penn State and 20th overall, boasting a 138-116-19 record with the Nittany Lions.
- He has led Penn State to two consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances and the 2017 Big Ten Tournament title. The 2016-17 team also achieved the program's first No. 1 national ranking in January and finished the season as the highest scoring team in the country, averaging 4.10 goals per game.
- Prior to his tenure in Happy Valley, Gadowsky was head coach at Princeton for seven seasons. He led the Tigers to two NCAA Tournament berths and coached 20 players who would go on to sign professional contracts.
- Gadowsky also previously served five seasons as head coach at Alaska, and three as head coach and director of operations for the WCHL's Fresno Falcons.
PEGULA ICE ARENA
- Capacity: 5,782
- Opened: September 9, 2013
- Home to the Nittany Lions' men's and women's hockey programs, as well as a 5,000-square foot weight room, hydrotherapy training room, steam room, team lounge and locker room area.
- Fans experience some of the best amenities in college hockey at Pegula, which boasts an interactive history of Penn State Hockey, concession stands, suites, loge boxes and club seats.
- The Centre County community is able to take advantage of the community rink, which is open nearly 360 days a year.
Credits:
Mark Selders, Craig Houtz